Mahalo nui loa to sponsors of the Oct 29th screening at UH Manoa: Hawaiinuiakea School of Hawaiian Knowledge, Hawaiinuiakea Native Hawaiian Students Services Kauhale, Kaulele, Kokua A Puni: Native Hawaiian Strengthening Institutions Program, Hui Aloha Aina Tuahine, the University of Hawaii Richardson School of Law, the Office of Faculty Development and Academic Support, and the Center for Instructional Support.

And a speical mahalo to Hui Aloha Aina Tuahine students for their beautiful and moving mele (three times!), Lia O’Neill Keawe, and to Dean Maenette Benham… for them to malama the film and its maker as they did is truly appreciated.

Mahalo nui to the students at UH Hilo who attended the screenings and talked story afterwards. I also want to say mahalo nui to the UH Hilo Hawaiian Club, the History Department and Kerri Inglis, and to Kalani ma at Kipuka. They collectively and kindly sponsored my journey there and honored me with lei, awa, chanting and makana (a lovely umeke made by Lopaka.).

The November 6th screening on Maui may be moved to another date, so check back if you are interested in that screening or the screenings being set up now for Waianae, and the UH and LCC campuses. I am hoping to get as many Hawaiians as possible to see this film before the end of the year.

A documentary about the militarization of Hawai’i, desecration and forced removal of Hawaiian people received the Hawaii International Film Festival’s highest award in the documentary film category, The Halekulani Golden Orchid Award For Best Documentary!

I am shocked and pleased and very, very grateful, and I accepted it on behalf of ALL OF US, especially the people in the film and others who are on the front lines of all of these issues working to take back our homeland.

There are still two more screenings and I am hoping people will come out. Not sure yet how the ticketing will work, but the festival will be showing it for free on Friday, Oct 17th at 3:30 pm and Sunday, Oct 19th at 6:45 pm. HIFF is doing this to make up for the trouble with the limited capacity theater the film found itself in on Monday. Let’s take ’em up on it and talk story about this story.

Hopefully by tomorrow we will know if people can get those free tickets online or if they have to show up first.

Please tell people to come out. It’s important to see Hawaiians in Hawaiian world on the big screen when possible and the subject matter is immediate and dire. I can’t believe this little movie won the award, but it still needs all of us to show up, if possible, and take the opportunity to talk story about what’s happening here.

The poem is a most fitting summary of the film (an uncompleted version was viewed for this review), which explicitly illustrates that the phenomenon of colonialism extends beyond the physical occupation of the land or replacement of the culture.

It’s important for people to come to this screening because they can vote for the film— and any attention this film gets shines a light on the issues represented in the film— and will help bring those issues to a larger audience outside of Hawaii.

“Noho Hewa” can and should be used to further our collective causes here. It’s not often that a feature length film represents actual Hawaiian matters or has the opportunity to be seen by a worldwide audience. Any chance we have to get our issues known beyond the local, corporate and haole owned media should be siezed.

Your support for this film will be appreciated and I hope to see everyone there.